Quotes & Sayings About Epic Fantasy

We forgive only that which requires forgiveness. To do otherwise is wasteful of grace.
Laniel, Abbot of Bilkar the Furred — Jordan MacLean

In the beginning there was only Darkness. — Karen Azinger

You're my girl and I'd die before I let anything happen to you. — Nicole Gulla

Seek Knowledge, Protect Knowledge, Share Knowledge. — Karen Azinger

Small men command the letter of the law. Great men serve its spirit. For the spirit of the law is justice ... and justice is the spirit of God. — J.C. Marino

No apologies. No matter what happens, I will never, not in a thousand tragic outcomes, ever regret loving you. — Sara Raasch

You are blessed with a knack for sucking the wonder out of the extraordinary. — Daniel McHugh

And still, all specifics aside, it was a fascinating thought. When something can't be known, when the particulars are lost forever, to look at the events that followed from it, that echoed it, and trace backwards toward the truth. Like seeing the ripples in a pond and knowing where the stone fell in. — Daniel Abraham

Hades, Hera, and Hestia!" Flynn curses, pointing up.
"What in the Underworld is that?"
"A She-Dragon." Everyone turns to me, and as much as I love having four handsome men gape at me in stupefaction, right now, I could do without. — Amanda Bouchet

Griffin's eyes capture mine. He holds my face in his hands. "You. Belong. With. Me. — Amanda Bouchet

Lay your head upon the snow," he sings, uncertain at first, but with more confidence as he loses himself in the lyrics.
"Lay sorrow in the ice. For all that once was calm, sweet child, will belong to you tonight. Lay your heart upon the snow. Lay your tears in the ice. For all that once was still, sweet child, will belong to you tonight. — Sara Raasch

The classic epic fantasy is good versus evil, underdog against power. — Laura Anne Gilman

I let my towel drop to the carpet.
Let him look me over as I put a hand on his chest, his heart raging beneath my palm.
"Ready for ravishing. — Sarah J. Maas

I wouldn't know how to write a weak female character. I read so much epic fantasy growing up, where you have these sword-wielding, in-your-face warrior maidens. — Richelle Mead

Those who die never truly leave us. They are forever there beyond the shimmering of light at the edge of sight. — Vanna Smythe

With his nose in my hair, he inhaled deeply before putting a light kiss on my cheek. "Have you come to play?" he asked then kissed me again.
"No." I cringed when he drew my earlobe into his mouth. "I came to help you. That's all. I swear."
"I'd rather play. — H.D. Smith

Shei'tani ... wilt thou swim with thy beloved in a river of dreams? — C.L. Wilson

What in the Haven's name just happened?"
Dazed and still trembling from the overload to her senses, Ellysetta floated in Rain's arms, her limp body draped across his, incapable of autonomous movement. She could barely think straight, let alone summon the strength to actually move.
Rain's chest rippled as he dragged in a shuddering breath. "I don't know." His voice came out hoarse, raspy. He swallowed, then tilted his chin against his chest to glance at her. A grin twitched at the corners of his mouth. "But I hope it happens again. — C.L. Wilson

In all your years, Anadyr, have you ever encounted the Dark Mage?" asked Aynara.
"I have not, my Lady, but I would hope for my entire existence not to happen on his ugliness."
Aynara turned to Anadyr. "I have, just once before. When he appears, he is anything but ugly, my Lord. In fact, one might consider him the most beautiful entity you have ever seen. Strange that it is often the case for many a foe we encounter. Evil often comes with a smile."
(from Stormling, 2014) — John Hennessy

I never thought I'd ever leave Zerc. But after knowing Cricket, it occurred to me that I had no reason to stay. I had no family, no friends aside from her. I never even spoke to Enkai until she brought us together. It was she who first inspired me to dream of actually seeing those worlds I spent my every waking moment reading about. Her and her wild heart, her laughing spirit, so bright in her eyes whenever she spoke of her travels and all the wondrous places she had seen. When I was a boy, I envied her for her adventures. When I became a man, I only pitied her. — Ash Gray

Making some noise in the woods is a thing that one can forget. The sound of a man's voice on the other hand, is something else entirely. — Angelo Tsanatelis

Death has a way of finding those who welcome it. — Sara Raasch

Every moment we have is one more moment that can't be taken from us. — Sara Raasch

When Angra conquered my kingdom sixteen years ago, he did so by breaking our Royal Conduit. And when a conduit is broken in defense of a kingdom, the ruler of that kingdom becomes the conduit themselves. Their body, their life force - it all merges with the magic. No one knows this, save for me, Angra, and the woman whose death turned me into Winter's conduit: my mother. — Sara Raasch

She glanced down and gasped, and her arms slapped into place to cover all her most interesting bits. He grinned. The robe and gown were sheer and he had not spun undergarments.
She scowled. "This is not what I would call being 'very, very good.'"
"That is a matter of perspective, shei'tani. From where I'm standing, it looks very, very good indeed. — C.L. Wilson

Cricket nodded apologetically. She ripped the blankets back and hopped off her bed. Enkai snorted out a laugh, and it took her a moment to realize she wasn't wearing pants. — Ash Gray

I wanted the feel in these books to be like an epic fantasy, with kings, queens, dukes and court politics, but of course like what I was explaining before, about making the science make sense, you have to make the politics make sense, too. — Kevin J. Anderson

It was one thing to go into battle with friends, and another to perish alone and despised. — George R R Martin

I don't need made-up strength. I'm strong enough on my own - me, Meira, no magic or conduit or anything. — Sara Raasch

The first time I saw Cricket, I loved her. Little did I know that skinny, goofy girl would one day grow up to be a great dragon slayer. I would have pegged her for a shoemaker. — Ash Gray

You think I could meet the most amazing person and not know how I could see her again? — Nicole Gulla

I'd like to say it could have been worse. I'm sure lots of people hate their job, or their boss, or the people they work with. I just couldn't relate to those people. They have options. They can quit their job, move out of town, or drop off the grid. The only option I had was a guaranteed one-way ticket to Hell when I died, and that didn't include dental. — H.D. Smith

I am not a good man, shei'tani," he corrected. "I never have been. But for you I will strive to be better. — C.L. Wilson

Reflections of the battlements shimmered in the deep green moat, casting an image of enduring strength, an image that defied the very siege of time. — Karen Azinger

When he caught his breath, he regarded her with glowing, half-closed eyes. If I'm very, very good, shei'tani, will you do that again when we're alone? — C.L. Wilson

There are no fates I cannot change, but this fate is one I cannot change without you. You are my strength, Rain. You are the courage I've always lacked."
He gave a choked laugh, and tears glittered in his eyes. "If I am your courage, then why does this idea of yours leave me so frightened? — C.L. Wilson

:She still didn't have to lock you in a box,: said the wolf, emerging from Cricket's thoughts. :If she does that again, I will eat her.:
Cricket laughed. :You wouldn't do that.:
:No, I would not. But as your companion and protector, I must bristle and play the part.: — Ash Gray

His tongue swirls against my skin, and I gasp. His voice rough with passion, he rasps, "You're living fire. I burn. — Amanda Bouchet

Long has black powder been in the hands of dwarves alone.
Alas, winds ever change and nothing remains the same forever.

Lord Arrlo Salkeld — J.P. Ashman

J. R. R. Tolkien, the near-universally-hailed father of modern epic fantasy, crafted his magnum opus The Lord of the Rings to explore the forces of creation as he saw them: God and country, race and class, journeying to war and returning home. I've heard it said that he was trying to create some kind of original British mythology using the structure of other cultures' myths, and maybe that was true. I don't know. What I see, when I read his work, is a man trying desperately to dream.
Dreaming is impossible without myths. If we don't have enough myths of our own, we'll latch onto those of others - even if those myths make us believe terrible or false things about ourselves. Tolkien understood this, I think because it's human nature. Call it the superego, call it common sense, call it pragmatism, call it learned helplessness, but the mind craves boundaries. Depending on the myths we believe in, those boundaries can be magnificently vast, or crushingly tight. — N.K. Jemisin

In the leaping light, as the fresh wood blazed up, Frodo saw many grey shapes spring over the ring of stones. More and more followed. Through the throat of one huge leader Aragorn passed his sword with a thrust; with a great sweep Boromir hewed the head off another. Beside them Gimli stood with his stout legs apart, wielding his dwarf-axe. The bow of Legolas was singing. — J.R.R. Tolkien

You said the d-word," Owllwin said regretfully. "I didn't think you would, or I woulda warned ya."
" . . . the d-word?" Cricket repeated in confusion.
"Yeah . . ." Owllwin paused as if he was glancing around, then he whispered through the wall, "Dragon."
Cricket blinked. "Why can't I say that? — Ash Gray

I will never let you go, and I will never leave you. I would defy creatures, and Gods, and terrible, brutal queens to keep you safe and by my side. I would move Mount Olympus itself to hold you in my arms and feel your heart beat against mine. You are my soul, and yes, I will fight for you and protect you until my dying breath. — Amanda Bouchet

Sefalin coddled his father's head in his lap. The old man's eyes were becoming glassy. Reminded of the elves, Lozane said, "Have you done as they say, my boy? Have you dredged up the Coda Uma and let it go to that blackheart Helix?"
Tears burst from Prince Sefalin's eyes. He couldn't speak, just nodded. His lips flushed a deeper purple. His hair was matted to his reddened forehead by blood. From head to toe he wore spatters and blotches of cadaverous slime and melting snowflakes. A vein in his temple throbbed hotly while mucus dripped from his nose. — Leonard Mokos

His hand trailed down the side of her face, brushing back spiraling tendrils of hair. Come, shei'tani, dance the skiles with your mate. — C.L. Wilson

LILY FELL OUT OF THE SKY. — Josephine Angelini

But then he saw it, then he saw what he had known he was seeing and could not accept. There in the night, amid the mist, upon the flat of the plains, the shimmer of light from Allear was not right. The grasses were too flat, the mists curled awkwardly, as if impeded by some large mass and then the glamor was gone, the trick revealed.
And before Thorin's very eyes, a mass of soldiers appeared - thousands of them - wearing black and facing his camp. Doom settled around Thorin like some shroud for a watery grave.
"Ah, bloody hell. — Clifton Hill

Dragons have wild hearts that need the open sky — Ava Richardson

My bare arms are only a relief for the first few minutes before the unobstructed sun finds my fair skin, and I swear I can hear the rays chuckle with delight at such a tasty meal. — Sara Raasch

Oh, how long were the days of a man.
When he strode upon the broken land.
He sailed as far as a man could steer.
And he never wished to lose his fear.
For the fear of man is a thing untold.
It keeps him safe, and it proves him bold!
Don't let fear make you cease to strive,
for that fear it proves you remain alive!
I will walk this broken road,
and I will carry a heavy load!
So come at me with your awful lies,
I'm a man of truth and I'll meet your eyes! — Robert Jordan

I'm like a toy to her, a toy that someone has promised her. Maybe not her favorite, but still hers. — Nicole Gulla

In the electronic game world, I know I have a reputation for doing the cyberpunk thing, and for doing the serious epic fantasy thing, but if you go back to when I was a kid, I've been a Disney fan all my life. — Warren Spector

He dismounted and lifted his arms to Shae. Light as she was, he had to step backward when she leaned into him. He steadied them both, and then turned to instruct the groom. When Kai looked for her again, Shae was gone. A smile touched his mouth as he went through an archway in the inner curtain wall. He would keep his knowledge of Shae's morning activities to himself. (from DawnSinger) — Janalyn Voigt

I braced my hands on my hips, examining the drop, the trees, the lake beyond. "What did I do wrong?"

Azriel, who had been sharpening Truth-Teller in his lap, flicked his hazel eyes up to me. "Aside from the tree? — Sarah J. Maas

My first three manuscripts were epic fantasy - like high fantasy - and then the fourth one was a historical fantasy about Mozart as a child. I still have a soft spot for that one! — Marie Lu

If honor were reserved only for those who never err, none of us would be worthy, Rain answered. — C.L. Wilson

I don't want you to go." She reached up to touch his face and pull him down to her. "I want this, Rain. I want you. — C.L. Wilson

Splendor was the decree of the day. — Karen Azinger

Like seduction, the Priestess took poisoning to an art form. — Karen Azinger

The unnamed man's nose flared in insult as he thought to himself while the pig named Corbin prattled on. He disgusts me with his gluttonous sweat and fearful stink. He is like a swine, plumped up for the slaughter, but none I would like to eat. He sits across the table from me wheedling, desiring, wanting more and more and more. He wants assurances of safety, he wants money, he want, he wants, he wants... I am close, but not quite ready, to lean across and slit his jowls with a second smile, stand up and leave. But that is not my job...not yet. — Clifton Hill

You have to earn it.' Vhalla didn't know what else to say. She had trusted him, to lead her, to teach her, and he broke that trust. It wasn't as though it was something she could simply start again on command. — Elise Kova

Ellysetta Baristani." Belliard's voice caused her to stop and turn back around. "Even should you clothe yourself in rags and dirt, you would bring honor to the Fey. — C.L. Wilson

When a mortal man breaks a people, it is always blamed on the gods. — S.M. White

I remembered Nahadoth's lips on my throat and fought to suppress a shudder, only half succeeding. Death as a consequence of lying with a god wasn't something I had considered, but it did not surprise me. A mortal man's strength had its limits. He spent himself and slept. He could be a good lover, but even his best skills were only guesswork - for every caress that sent a woman's head into the clouds, he might try ten that brought her back to earth. — N.K. Jemisin

His throat bobbed. "I missed you. Every second, every breath. Not just this," he said, shifting his hips for emphasis and dragging a groan from deep in my throat, "but... talking to you. Laughing with you. I missed having you in my bed, but missed having you as my friend even more."
"Never again," I promised him, and whispered it over and over as the sunlight drifted across the floor. — Sarah J. Maas

A reviewer once commented that my urban fantasy novels were paced more like epic fantasy, in that they relied on complex world-building and a gradual immersion in the lives of the characters. — Laura Anne Gilman

Critics have called alien epic 'Avatar' a version of 'Dances With Wolves' because it's about a white guy going native and becoming a great leader. But Avatar is just the latest scifi rehash of an old white guilt fantasy. — Annalee Newitz

She drew a breath and her lips parted in two words that rebounded through his body.
"Kiss me," she said.
So he did the only thing he could do... — Sara Raasch

Walking alongside his apprentice's horse, Sethil Longmere, magus of the Third Circle, Magi Master of Dormir's army, and a man who had seen more years than most men could count, did his best to keep his apprentice Rousche from falling off his gelding. The dun horse had a sure foot and a good temper, but it seemed unlikely the animal was used to a grown man lying face first in its mane, legs sprawled behind, dangling with each step. — Clifton Hill

I'll believe that when the Underworld freezes over and Centaurs fly. — Amanda Bouchet

A man without equals is a dangerous man indeed. He must exercise the most difficult of attributes, restraint. — Daniel McHugh

She paused in the doorway, tipping her head to consider Brittany, who only glared. "You're right. I think most girls don't look like the tooth fairy dresses them every day. — Wendy Knight

The hard truths are the ones to hold tight. - Old Bear — George R R Martin

I now wondered if the lullaby of death was not a lovely song, but the droning of flies. If flies and maggots were all Death's handmaidens. — Sarah J. Maas

You came here of your own free will, Claire. I won't be denied. You're mine now, and I intend to keep you. — H.D. Smith

Fate is a tricky animal. Those who believe they harness it, often find a difficult beast to master. — Daniel McHugh

Never promise things you can't deliver," I whisper.
"I can try," he whispers back, and I hate myself because I smile. — Amanda Bouchet

What I want to know is when does Lily get off her butt and do some chores?" Tristan said, panting, as he dragged a gnarly stump of bleached wood up the beach. "I feel like I've been stacking wood and stoking fire all damn day while she just sits there."
Rowan gave Tristan a disapproving look. "It's a mechanic's privilege to serve his witch. — Josephine Angelini

Make a decision, and don't turn back."
"What if it's wrong?"
"I don't know." He winks at me over his shoulder. "It's never happened. — Amanda Bouchet

This is what I mean..." I say softly, "you don't seem very angel-y right now"

"I'm not feeling very angel-y right now", he reply — A.J. Messenger

It's so cold that foreigners have to wrap in layers of fur to walk from building to building, while our natural Winterian blood keeps us warm even in the worst conditions. And snow is everywhere, always, so much that the grass beneath it is white from lack of sun. An entire kingdom wrapped in an orb of eternal winter. — Sara Raasch

How do you get the happy ending? John Irving ought to know. One of my favorite authors, Irving writes these multigenerational epics of fiction that somehow work out in the end. How does he do it? He says, 'I always begin with the last sentence ; then I work my way backwards, through the plot, to where the story should begin.' Thst sounds like a lot of work, especially compared to the fantasy that great writers sit down and just go where the story takes them. Irving lets us know that good stories and happy endings are more intentional than that.
Most 20 something's can't write the last sentence of their lives. But when pressed, they usually can identify things they want in their 30s or 40s or 60s -or things they don't want- and work backward from there. This is how you have your own multigenerational epic with a happy ending. This is how you live your life in real time. — Meg Jay

Don't you get it Cat? You're the key. I knew it the day I laid eyes on you. — Amanda Bouchet

The mind that thought of light, heavy, grey, yellow, still, swift, also conceived of magic that would make heavy things light and be able to fly, turn grey lead into yellow gold, and the still rock into a swift water. — J.R.R. Tolkien

Whether they'll write the story of my life as a tragedy or an epic fantasy ... I was wondering if it was going to be a kiss at the end, or sad music and a sweeping camera shot over the fields I once roamed freely. I'm hoping for the kiss, but expecting the sweeping camera shot. — Maggie Stiefvater

A dream? With you, reality is always as a dream. There is no greater fantasy, no grander epic, than being with you. — Zechariah Barrett

I eyed the sheriff. "So I better be breathing when He finds me." "Who the hell are you talking about?" the sheriff blurted.
I chuckled.
The postman sneered at the sheriff. "She means the Demon King. The Devil. This is a phone from Hell - the real one. — H.D. Smith

I flinched when his hands lifted, although it was more of a reaction to everything that had been happening to me, not necessarily because he was Death. He stilled. "You're sad," he said. "Let me help you."
"There isn't anything you can do."
"I can comfort you. — H.D. Smith

He leaves. Just like that. No final good-bye, no last, lingering glance.
Like we never loved each other at all. — Sara Raasch

I headed for my office, but stopped when I saw my laptop on the couch. Sorrel had obviously borrowed it - again - without permission. I grabbed it, wondering what questionable site he'd left on the screen this time and making a mental note to run the anti-virus software. After taking a shower, putting on my pajamas, and fixing an ice cream sundae for dinner - yes, it was one of those days - I sat down at my desk and pulled up the web browser. — H.D. Smith

With every fall of the sun and rise of the moon, I can hear it. The Prophecy. It echoes through the halls of time. It is written on the surface of every star. Even the sun and moon cannot withhold the news of the second coming. I hear it. And I fear it. — Brian A. McBride

Lord Hawksheart said we should stay together," she reminded him. ' Do not leave your mate's side,' he said. 'You hold each other to the Light,' he said. And he said we could only defeat the Darkness together."
"He said many things. Most of which I don't trust."
The safest place for me is at your side. Whatever happens, we face it together."
His eyes closed and he nodded. "Doreh Shabeila de." So shall it be. — C.L. Wilson

You will know him by the blade he carries and the Dark-born skill with which he wields it, for none who know the love of the Father may defeat the Darkblade, yet all must stand against him. — Anthony Ryan

I roll my eyes. "Oh, the woe of being adored."
Beta Sinta grins. "It's a hard life. — Amanda Bouchet

Ellysetta Baristani is my shei'tani." His eyes found hers. "My truemate." A murmur of voices rippled through the crowd.
"Please tell the court what a truemate is."
"A truemate is the person who holds the other half of a Fey's soul." His gaze never left hers, and Ellie felt the magic of his voice wrapping her in imperceptible weaves of longing. "It is the most sacred bond known to any Fey, more sacred than that between a king and his subjects, more sacred even than that between a mother and a child. — C.L. Wilson

If Robert Benchley and Dorothy Parker had teamed up to write epic fantasy, something like Split Heirs might have resulted. — John DeChancie

I don't know why it's not universally acknowledged that looking back is a terrible idea. It only makes going forward that much harder. — Amanda Bouchet

Angra wanted to break me.
But he only made me unbreakable. — Sara Raasch

Are you sure about this?" Rowan asked.
"No," Lily shouted over the whipping wind. Her voice came out choked as it tried to get around her stomach, which was now lodged in her throat. "But it's the only way."
Rowan looked over the side, his face serene as he timed it. Lily saw his willstone pulse as every sense in him sharpened, and he pulled her tightly against his body and launched them off the drake's neck into thin air.
Lily shrieked uncontrollably, clutching at Rowan desperately as they fell. — Josephine Angelini

For Honor and the Octagon! — Karen Azinger